Global President s Report:

Transcription

1 Global President s Report: After four years as IFSW President, having been elected in Hong Kong in 2010 this is my final report as IFSW President. I leave you with some thoughts and observations about the challenges and opportunities facing all of us as members of the global social work community. IFSW is an organization that has been very active since we last met together in Stockholm. Through our work at the regional and national and global levels on the Global Agenda as evidenced by the Reports submitted to the Global Observatory is having an important and significant impact. A number of individuals have provided IFSW with a commitment and have ensured that as an organization we are both influential and credible. My appreciation to our UN representatives especially for the ways in which they have increased our visibility and capacity especially as it relates to the Global Agenda. IFSW s Regional Presidents and Members at- Large continue to be active and work diligently to identify new member organizations who wish to become a part of IFSW. There is a wide variety amongst our members and our regions; some are quite strong and active, while others lack the most basic resources. Newer members value IFSW s support and look to us to help them build their capacity and we have seen some of our member association s step up to support the fees and offer other supports to smaller and developing members. Thank you! The effective and efficient use of IFSW regional funding in Latin America/Caribbean and Africa has led to successful meetings and conferences that will only serve to enhance the work of IFSW. I have had the opportunity both here at home and away to meet our members and to see the work that is occurring in some of our other regions. I have had the opportunity to meet with numbers of delegations from around the world while they were in the United States when their work or travels brought them to Boston. I am deeply appreciative of the kindnesses which have been extended towards me and for the opportunity to meet such dedicated social workers and individuals. I have continued to make the Global Agenda a priority and to promote both it and the Global Observatory as well as look for opportunities to highlight IFSW policies with a particular focus on women and girls, HIV/AIDS, environmental sustainability, health / mental health, LGBT-Q and human rights, and the rights of indigenous people. Working with our technology department at Simmons College (my special thanks go to Ms. Jamie Traynor who helped me in this effort in her off time) I attempted to develop more professional and visually appealing WSWD videos that could be used on YouTube and in other arenas going forward. It is my continued belief that the more we share and link to our own policies that it can only help to promote and strengthen IFSW as well as the global social work profession. Secretary General Rory Truell and I have continued the organizational change process that was discussed in Stockholm and has been regularly shared with members. This process has required that we as an organization that we look both at the external world and its complexities while at the same time taking account of our own capacity and limitations and then decide what it is that is in the best interest of our members and of IFSW. We must also develop newer ways of doing business, such as meetings and conferences; and thinking about ways in which we utilize technology and make better use of it. We have attempted to utilize social media vehicles such as Face book Twitter and YouTube as a way of energizing

2 and mobilizing our members. This is especially true as we work to engage with younger members for whom technology is an end versus a means of interacting. Since we met in Stockholm and the Executive Committee met in New York City the world seems to be awash in change and I like many others would sometimes like it all to cease to allow me to catch up and integrate more of the new knowledge, but that is neither likely nor is that realistic. Change as a concept is one thing but putting change into action is quite another; but change is an important and necessary undertaking. The process of self reflection often identifies where one is not and where one wants to be, but it can also allow for a period of reflection that also allows one to see how far one has come from where you started. As an organization we have made important progress since we last met in Stockholm but there is still a great deal more for us to do. My priorities have remained since we last met in Stockholm include: Exploring & increasing new revenue streams Identifying the structural obstacles to effective collaborations and partnerships Developing new and strategic partnerships Encouraging and accelerating innovation Capitalizing on our enhanced Information Technology and web infrastructure to contribute to our growth Creating strategies to respond to changing global demographics IFSW becoming a recognized expert We continue to live in a period of great complexity. These are times when great investments are being made in banks and not in people and yet there seems to be surprise when those who have been at the bottom and for many the global financial crisis of 2008 is still a very major and worsening crisis and poverty rates around the world are increasing. Draconian global austerity efforts and conservative ideology continue to fatten the wallets of the oligarchs who believe that the free market is working. There is less and less discussion of a social safety net for many of the world s people. Given this reality the cuts and reductions in social spending becomes even more alarming. It is not surprising that the actions by governments and oligarchs create massive injustices which can and have erupted into protest and civil unrest. I do not believe that any amount of social work intervention should take away an individual s right to protest against injustice and unfairness. I would like to also thank René Schegg our former Policy and Communications Officer worked many more hours for IFSW. Prior to the arrival of our Secretary General I and we benefitted greatly from Rene s work on the website, dealing with the never ending number of s, designing the visuals World Social Work Day(s) as well as his considerable linguistic talents and communication skills really helped to make such a difference; he is also an all around nice guy who sees the best in all situations and tries his upmost to accommodate most if not all that is asked of him! Thank you René! Last but not least, is the enormous debt of thanks and gratitude owed to Fiona Robertson who has served as IFSW Treasurer and IFSW all around go to person. As a member of the Executive and of the Steering Committee Fiona s deep understanding and appreciation of the history and intricacies of IFSW have never cease to astound. She has at my request undertaken the important work of beginning a process to ensure that important documents related to IFSW s history are not lost but rather preserved and protected for future generations. We have learned from the experiences of others that the traditional ways in which we had thought about record preservation in the event of a major disaster does not work as

3 evidenced by the experience of organizations in the world that have been devastated by catastrophic disasters. After her term as Treasurer concludes she has agreed to become IFSW s Honorary Archivist \ In conclusion I want to thank you all for your ongoing support over the last four years and I wish you all well! Overview of Regional Structure The Executive Committee is elected by members in good standing at the General Meeting which is held every two years. Members serve a 4-year term, unless they are filling a position that has been vacated early by another member. The Executive Committee is comprised of the Global President, Treasurer, one Regional President and Member at Large for each of the 5 regions. The eligibility criteria for the office of President are membership of a Member in good standing and previous personal service in some capacity with the Federation of no less than two years. 1. Links to Other Regional Organisations (ie. IASSW, ICSW, UN, Regional bodies such as Africa Union and EU): I have worked closely over the last two years since the last general meeting in Stockholm with IASSW President Dr.Vimla Nadkarni with whom I presented in New York City at the 30 th anniversary of Social Work Day at the UN; and this April(2014) with IASSW Treasurer Dr. Julia Watkins with whom I presented at the 2014 Social Work Day the UN. Both presentations focused on the Global Agenda and the development and purpose of the global Observatoy. We (IF /IA) have had the opportunity to meet in person at several meetings and to continue to develop a more comprehensive vision for how we work together especially at the UN in New York. We have begun the process of developing a Memorandum of Agreement that will be acceptable to both organizations as a way of helping to delineate roles, work and responsibilities, especially as they relate to SW Day at the UN. I have also been engaged in developing a personal working relationship with ICSW s Executive Director Sergei Zelenev.I recently travelled to Washington D.C. I was a featured speaker at an ICSW-USA event at the Jamaican Embassy where he was being honoured and that gesture of support and solidarity was very well received by ICSW. 1.1 Regional Conferences: Keynote( May 2014) Social Work and Health Care: A view from a global perspective. CASW ACTS and CASWE-ACFTS National Joint Conference 2014 Borders without Boundries: Navigating the New Frontiers of Social Work. Brock University. Saint Catharine s,ontario. Canada

4 July 22-25, 2012 I attended and presented at the National Association of Social Workers 2012 Conference:RESTORING HOPE: THE POWER OF SOCIAL WORK in Washington D.C. Speaking at the conference was Mme. Leymah Gwobe,Liberian social worker & Nobel Peace Prize Laureate; also in attendance was Dr. Jill Biden, wife of the Vice President of the United States 3.2: 27 th September 2012 I had the pleasure of being invited to a speech by n Nobel Laureate Mme. Aang Sang Suu Kyi at Harvard University s John F. Kennedy School of Government 28th September 2012 I had the honor and pleasure of being part of a small group who met with Elena B. Poptodorova, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the United States of America and his Excellency Rosen Plevneliev, President of Bulgaria at the offices of the Cambridge Innovative Center where I was able to present to the President a copy of the Global Agenda for ocial Work and Social Development.. June 17th-19th New York City: I was invited by IFSW North America Regional President and NASW-USA President Dr. Jeane Anastas to participate as a keynote speaker at the Silver School of Social Work at New York University s Global Health and Well-Being: The Social Work Response, conference in New York City July 8-12 th 2013 Willemstad Curacao: I attended the Association of Caribbean Social Work Educators (ACSWE) in Willemstad Curacao along with IFSW Regional President for Latin America and the Caribbean, Laura Acotto where we both had been invited to give keynote addresses. This biennial (every two years) conference, sponsored by the Association of Caribbean Social Work Educators (ACSWE), holds a distinctly prestigious position on the calendars of Social Work Educators, researchers and practitioners in the Caribbean Community and its Diaspora. Since 1993, it has been hosted by Institutions that teach and conduct research on Social Work in the Caribbean. The theme for the 2013 Conference was: Continuing Sustainable Social Transformation: Promoting Innovative Social Development Praxis in the Caribbean and Latin American July 15-19, 2013Kampala, Uganda : I attended and delivered a keynote address at the Biennial International Consortium on Social Development Conference which was co-sponsored by: Simmons College (Boston, MA, USA) Makerere University (Kampala, Uganda).The conference co-chairs were :Professor Hugo A. Kamya, Ph.D. (Simmons College),Professor Edward K. Kirumira, Ph.D. (Makerere

5 University) and Dr. Barbara W. Shank, Dean and Professor (University of St. Thomas at St. Catherine University), President, ICSD,& President, Council on Social Work Education(CSWE)-USA 1.2 Social Work Day: I focused each year on trying to develop a video message of professional quality that could be viewed from youtube and which promoted the themes of WSWD and also presented the profession in a professional manner World Social Work Day Gary Bailey, President of IFSW. Retrieved from World Social Work Day 2011: Message from IFSW President Gary Bailey. Retrieved from Video Message from the IFSW President Gary Bailey on the occasion of World Social Work Day Retrieved from Meetings with Members: I am always proud to promote the Global Agenda, and found the discussions regarding the Global Definition informative. Being able to do outreach to potential new IFSW members to come before the Melbourne meeting in 2014 was especially exciting; and advocating with appointed and elected officials on behalf of those individuals and communities with whom never gets tiresome nor does having the opportunity to interact with IFSW regions and our members. Travel at its best is challenging but worthwhile overall. I returned home tired but also inspired by the work and action of our profession around the world! Human Rights Campaigns: Bailey, G., Burzynski, R., Kahn, E., Tomaszewski, E., Global Update: The State of LGBT Equity (June 2014). NASW Specialty Practice Section Webinar. National Association of Social Workers-USA : Washington, D.C. Bailey,G. (2014).Preface. Social Work and Lesbian,Gay,Bi-Sexual,and Transhealth Inequalities: International Perspectives. Policy Press,London, UK (in press) IFSW through the Global President made a statement as it related to the kidnapping of the Nigerian School Girls and made a statement as part of the Bring Back Our Girls Campaign

6 IFSW has been engaged through the Global President in the International AIDS Conference held in Washington DC where I presented and IFSW was an endorser of the Washington Declaration which came out of the international meeting. IFSW has endorsed the Melbourne Declaration as part of the Melbourne International AIDS Conference 23rd December 2013 IFSW sent letters in opposition to the Ugandan anti- Homosexuality Bill to President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi and Archbishop Michael Blume,Apostolic Nunciature 1.4 Membership Development: At the meeting Laura Acotto and I attended in Curacao in July 2013 we spent a great deal of time doing outreach to people from Aruba,, Barbados,, Bonaire, Costa Rico, Cuba, Curacao, expressed interest in becoming engaged with IFSW Grenada, Guatemala, Guadalupe Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, St. Maarten, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, who expressed interest in becoming involved with IFSW. I also had the opportunity to attend the meeting of the North American and Caribbean Association of Schools of Social Work (NACASSW) which I participated in, as well as the election of a new ACSWE President, Jamaica s. Dr. Peta Anne Baker.Keith Carlo was re-elected as the ACSWE Vice President. 3.6 Other I was honored to be recognized along with Dr. Lyudmila Harutyunyan, with Doctor of Humane Letters degrees during the University of Connecticut s School of Social Work Recognition ceremony on May 11 th Dr. Harutyunyan, known as the mother of Armenian social work, is a highly regarded researcher and educator whose work has taken her around the world and who also is a former member of the Congress of the People s Deputies in the Soviet Union. She is regarded as a particularly courageous scholar, often writing about important social topics in countries that discouraged discussions about the issues or denied they were occurring..